Louisville perfume house Enchanted Alchemy channels charm through its nature-influenced scent collection

March 17, 2026

Photo provided by Zahraa Albusharif

Intentional handcraftsmanship and nature-respecting sustainability practices make up the foundation of local perfume house Enchanted Alchemy.

Zahraa Albusharif is the owner and founder of the three-year-old business, producing everything herself and specializing in limited batches for a niche audience.

Albusharif shared that her fragrance collection now includes seven scents, often available as perfume and in additional product forms.

An Enchanted philosophy

Through its established fragrance line, Enchanted Alchemy taps into the idea that fragrance often has more depth than consumers realize.

Albusharif thinks scents set and reflect daily moods, and because people use them so often, their quality and healthiness should be considered.

 She selects wholesome ingredients from reputable sources to ensure they are non-toxic and work for people with sensitivities.

One of Albusharif’s current focuses is creating products with fewer fragrance oils. Her next number-named fragrance will be available as a perfume and as an essential- and fragrance-oil-free body oil complement. It will launch sometime in May.

Photo provided by Zahraa Albusharif

Browse before No. 8’s release

Albusharif shared insight on her bestsellers for those who want to explore past releases before No. 8 comes out.

She said Enchanted Alchemy’s two bestsellers came as a surprise.

“I really thought No. 1 and No. 5 would be the most challenging ones because they have very strong opening notes, and it takes them about 10 minutes to dry down and settle to their beautiful base notes, which people don't tend to wait this long to get to the base note of a perfume,” Albusharif said.

On top of this, No. 2 is the perfumery’s least-sold scent blend, which she thought would suit and appeal to a larger demographic.

“This is the irony of when you have a business, it's so unexpected,” she said.

Achieving the Alchemy

For Albusharif, even the unexpected scents start with a personality and mood she wants to evoke, which she “reverse engineers” into a product through brainstorming and planning.

“I start thinking and visualizing what notes we can start with to build this up to the final result I'm looking for,” Albusharif said.

Then, a trial-and-error mixing process begins.

Albusharif said that creating perfumes requires a lot of experimentation, and raw ingredients don’t always lead to clear scent note layers.

“It's more like if you mix certain ingredients with different properties, one can cancel the other, or both of them can smell completely different than their original scent profile or scent note,” Albusharif said.

Once she finds a balanced blend, Albusharif mixes the ingredients with an alcohol that matches and lets the scent macerate, aging it with cane sugar alcohol to help break its compounds down.

She said this allows the scent to improve with wear, making her work distinct.

“Macerating the oil or the perfume itself that I made allows it to smell even better than how it started on the day. I made it to last longer and created a very sophisticated perfume that would smell different over time, and this is something that I'm known for,” she said.

Whether she’s reached maceration or is still in the planning phase, sustainable practices are at the heart of every step of Albusharif’s process, from the recycled, reusable glass bottles to the fabric cases she creates.

The goal is to continually achieve better balances between cost-effectiveness and sustainable production.

Albusharif is working on a refill program as an incentive for customers to reuse bottles as well as “plantable” packaging.

“At the end of the day, my main goal was to have the lightest or the smallest footprint in your home, in my home or even in the landfill," she said.

Photo provided by Zahraa Albusharif

Enchanted beginnings

Growing up, Albusharif called the United Arab Emirates home, where she said personal hygiene and a well-cared-for appearance are culturally significant.

She added that she always looked for a product she couldn’t find, blind-buying perfumes in search of a signature with more challenging scent notes.

She also wanted to support buyers with sensitivities who could not wear scents without reacting to them.

When Albusharif realized she wanted to address these needs with her own products, she chose to study with industry experts and attend an academy in Thailand. There, she spent time refining her knowledge of the chemical side of perfumery and exploring hands-on experimental opportunities.

Later, Albusharif moved to the United States, hoping to build on this experience and expand her opportunities. After exploring several states, she was drawn to Colorado’s nature and activity, which she thinks holds a lot of beauty.

She emphasized that even though Enchanted Alchemy has been around for a few years, many more have gone into her work today.

Her work progresses because of passion, and she suggests that anyone looking to start a business consider following those moments, especially if they offer solutions to modern problems.

“If you're sitting about your day, and you have your idea and it sparks so clearly in your head, that's definitely something you're passionate about, and I think you should start it,” she said.

Albusharif also learned that business owners who confide less in others for feedback on passion-filled processes, outside of mentorship situations, will and should “be more fearless.”

Those interested in exploring further can visit Enchanted Alchemy’s website to learn more about Albusharif and browse her products.

Enchanted Alchemy is also on Instagram, which is where most announcements can be found, as well as on TikTok and Threads.

Zahraa Albusharif’s Colorado Favorites

Albusharif shouted out Colorado’s coffee scene, which introduces her to different farms from different countries.

She shared her appreciation for Mary Leavengood, the owner of Verb Coffee Roasters in Boulder.

Albusharif said she visited Verb’s coffee shop regularly when she first moved to Colorado and enjoyed connecting with Leavengood.

"She made me even more interested in experimenting with different beans from different origins and trying new things, and you can tell if a business owner is very passionate about their job because they try to get you involved beyond you making a transaction. That's when I really felt comfortable going there once, twice and three times a week, because I felt like it was a genuine connection.”